The summer was devastating for Illinois jobs and manufacturing, and the
beginning of autumn marked little improvement.
Companies in Illinois announced 790 layoffs in September, including 128 layoffs
in manufacturing. September’s numbers mark a slight improvement from August,
which saw 1,044 mass layoffs, with 495 of the jobs lost coming from the
manufacturing sector.
While the number of mass layoffs in September was lower than those in August, it
is little consolation considering August was the worst month for Illinois
manufacturing since the Great Recession.
The figures are from the September Illinois Worker Adjustment and Retraining
Notification, or WARN, report. The WARN report is intended to notify workers and
the public of mass-layoffs on a monthly basis. While not entirely reflective of
the overall state of the economy, WARN reports are useful for understanding
monthly layoffs.
The 128 September manufacturing layoffs came entirely from Bretford
Manufacturing, Inc., an office furniture manufacturer based in Franklin Park.
Plastic Workers’ Union, Local 18 AFL-CIO represented the workers.
Cook County bore the brunt of the burden, accounting for 453 of the total
layoffs. After Cook, White County was the most devastated county, losing 227
workers. The entirety of White County’s job losses came from a single employer:
White County Coal, LLC which specializes in bituminous coal underground mining.
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Illinois’ continued loss of jobs, especially high-paying,
blue-collar jobs in the manufacturing and mining sectors, is due to
the state’s refusal to enact reforms. Illinois has the highest
property taxes in the country, the most expensive workers’
compensation system in the region, ballooning pension costs and
near-junk level credit status. All of these factors combined have
made Illinois the Midwest’s manufacturing graveyard and has hastened
the severe out-migration crisis.
Other Midwestern states have enacted pro-growth policies, which have
enabled businesses to expand opportunities for working and
middle-class families. After the Great Recession, Michigan passed
Right-to-Work statewide and cut taxes. Because of these reforms and
the restructuring of the auto industry, Michigan created 171,000
manufacturing jobs, 12 for every one that was created in Illinois.
It doesn’t have to stay this way. By taking lessons from Michigan
and instituting pro-growth reforms, Illinois can revitalize its
dying manufacturing sector and bounce back from years of failed
policies.
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